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hi from Wyoming

first year beekeeper / joined this forum to find info / is it normal for dead bees covered in white to be spotted being pushed off the front step of the hive?
also: I have my hive on a stand that has cinder blocks for a base - in these cinder blocks there seems to have developed a collection of small spiders -
would this ever develop into a problem or is this a natural development around a hive? thanks--

Re: hi from Wyoming

Hey fellow Wyomingite, the forum you currently posted in is the welcome Forum. Most (all pretty much posts in this forum are for new comers to introduce themselves and say hi. If you want more responses to your question you would have better luck posting in the beekeeping 101 forum or general beekeeping forum.

I can't answer the dead bees being covered in white being pushed off the front step of the hive without a picture or more information. A stab in the dark is it could just be dead bees that maybe have white pollen on them that have died natural causes and are being ejected. How many dead bees are we talking? 5, 50 or 500? If it's a small number it's probably not cause for concern, however, if it's a large number further investigation would probably be warranted.

I definitely would not worry about the spiders unless they cause a potential threat to you (black widows?) or if they become so populous that they affect the bees. It's doubtful that many of your bees are spending time down in the cinder blocks and getting caught up by the spiders. If nothing else the spiders are providing some defense against ants, so bonus!

Good luck! =)

*EDIT*

Another thought about the bees being covered in white, I don't know why I didn't think of this at first, but; the bottom of the hive is where a lot of waste from the colony collects. Pollen that has dropped off or wax cappings that have been removed. The bees are most likely laying on the bottom of the hive dead getting covered in discarded wax and then being drug to the entrance by housekeepers. Hope this helps.

We the willing have done so much with so little for so long we can now do anything with nothing